I sit on the periphery of journalism. A PR guy who needs journalists for business purposes and appreciates a good read, too. So I have been struck that this week the biggest news stories have been, well, about news.

Meditation might just offer what the world needs, if only human beings could be gifted with a modicum of mindfulness. And mindfulness is, if you ask me, widely, appallingly underestimated. Not to be confused with self-awareness!

George Orwell stated, "Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed. Anything else is public relations." Unfortunately, most North American journalists have acted as PR reps for Israel's ongoing invasion in a variety of ways, some subtle, others explicit.

To give women more opportunities, Invest in Muslim Women funds training centres in India and Pakistan, giving women marketable skills in industries such as fashion. After a training session, the average woman's salary in India jumps from $12 a month to $60 -- a five-fold return that has the added benefit of raising her status in the family as well as in the community.

Recently, the Times' laudably levelheaded public editor wrote about the "Recommended" section's growing real estate. Readers had, according to Sullivan, complained about the move's impinging on their privacy; some noted that they were sufficiently competent to choose the articles they read on their own; others did not want their reading preferences monetized.

An ultra-marathon is a foot race longer than the standard 42.2km marathon distance. The reason why I was so interested in the findings of this study is because I have run a few ultras during my running career...

Are we doing enough about an illness that is silently eating away at both a mother and daughter?
Twenty years ago, People Magazine headlined one of their covers with, "Princess Di: Struggle with Bulimia Brings a Puzzling Disease Out of the Shadows." Eating disorders still remain a private battle for millions of young women, and the faces of those affected are changing. We'd be downright wrong to frame it as a "rich, white girl's disease." How do you capture the cost of subjecting millions of women to calorie counting or religious scale stepping?

Millennials face these "trappings of success" and we aren't making six figures. We live in a world where our parents, teachers, and professors of the c-suite generation still hold us to these traditional measures of success. Today post-secondary students are graduating with more than $26,000 in debt, on average. This is a far cry from the rosier prospects that those in the Baby Boom generation saw when they were in their 20s.

The newspaper industry has yet to come to terms with the Internet. With decreasing circulation figures and declining ad revenues, daily papers haven't figured out how to turn a profit from their online readership. There have been numerous attempts at getting online users to pay, few of which have worked.

The sciences continue to offer boundless promise for the profession and the sick. It's the humanities that will beg how we get there. In medicine, we are certainly privileged with "front row-seats on life" -- the worry is being glued to an iPhone amidst all that meaning.

You'll find a fantastic mix of spectacular beauty and gritty urban appeal in Glasgow, Scotland. Meanwhile, the New York Times ranked this laid-back city as the 12th best place to visit in 2012. Here are seven reasons why I love exploring Glasgow and you will too.

I couldn't help but wonder what kind of individual downloads a photo of a cute little girl running a race, then, with the full knowledge that what they're doing is fraud, fobs it off as the victim of a heinous attack? Was it not tragic enough that we knew three people had died, dozens were seriously injured and thousands profoundly affected? It made me angry.

Much like any new offering from Stephen King, which requires time to determine its place in his legacy, the new H7N9 flu requires more than just a few weeks to determine its place in the historical records of infectious disease.

He's young, lean, handsome, well over six feet tall, has dark, curly hair, a smile that makes women go weak at the knees, wants to build a better world and is the son of a famous Liberal Party leader. No, he's not the one you're thinking of. Instead of trying to become the next prime minister of Canada, this one's trying something even tougher.

Send those thank you emails. Send them liberally and sincerely. While efficiency is key, particularly in a business capacity, I also appreciate doing business with nice people. Kindness and thoughtfulness go a long way in building and maintaining relationships, a distance that efficiency alone cannot.

With Hurricane Sandy happening, the Wall Street Journal and New York Times took down their paywalls. The altruist might think these newspapers are helping the masses with a public service. The cynic might see a very different picture.
What makes this situation both unique and different is how easily technology enables information to be free and shareable or locked down and private. With a flick of the switch these massive publishers control access to information. We can debate the good and the bad of this, but what is important is how instant the access is...or isn't.

The subject matter and plot of Innocence of Muslims are an abomination, deeply offensive to people who really, really don't need to be offended any more, particularly during this delicate time in their history. But I believe absolutely in my right to be offended. Which is the reason I simply can't propose that we lessen our democracies by banning any writings and films offensive to Muslims or any other religious folk.

Most newspaper journalists aren't overly-fond of their publishers. Arthur "Punch" Sulzberger who was publisher of the estimable New York Times was always a splendid exception. In fact, he put his own freedom, and his newspaper's very existence, on the line because he believed absolutely in the public's right to know. Punch Sulzberger died Saturday and got a send-off few publishers anywhere have ever earned.